Not having specific race goals like the Running Chick, or specific weight loss goals like Erin at Lose the Budda (A blog from which we can all take writing style tips), sometimes I find myself floundering. I didn’t get in a real ride yesterday due to rain and scheduling, but was able to crank out a dozen or so laps of the building (all of about 2 miles) on the bike after working hours as a stress reliever. I kept being tempted to ride it like a crit, diving into corners and stuff, but held back as I hadn’t changed for it, and hadn’t put on helmet or, IMO more important when riding where traffic isn’t much of an issue, gloves.
Take this morning. I really, really did not want to get out of bed – it’s been gloomy all weekend, and I’ve been stressed at the office. It would have been really, really easy to punt. Except for the fact I knew that Christian would be up and waiting for me; and I’m sure the last thing he wanted at 5 AM was a phone call saying “Hey, I’m sleeping in.” So, determined to be his 6 AM man, I dragged myself out of bed, brewed a little coffee, and hit the road.
Good thing I did – what was a gloomy, grey morning in Mystic was beautiful in Newport. Blue skies, cool weather, and the site of boats bobbing in the harbor. And the run met it. Chris’ goal for today was to knock out 10 minutes of solid running, and he hung on easily, despite really kicking it in at the 5 minute point, and making me curse him while trying to hold on.
Despite feeling pretty spent, I slowed up a little bit and charged up the hill at Memorial. Pshew. I haven’t been running enough lately, especially not to do a hill after a fast, fast start. But I kept trundling up it, and decided to turn left at the top instead of turning around, adding another tenth of a mile or so of slight uphill. The downhill felt good, and I got all stretched out. Caught up with Christian after about 2.5 total/22 minutes, and we walked the mile back to his place.